Scott Griffith

Scott Griffith has been teaching at Briar Cliff in the Business Department for 4 years. Along with teaching and partaking in some faculty committees, Griffith is an advisor at Briar Cliff. In this role, he ensures students are on the right track and they have the classes they need to give them the best opportunities when they graduate.

“It’s not just teaching, but the teaching is the main focus and the best part of the job”, he said.

Griffith got his bachelor’s degree at Northwestern University in Chicago, and then studied for a semester at Moscow University. He got his master’s degree at Indiana University, and from there, he started his professional career. Griffith was in the Air Force for 7 years and, in 1998, decided to return to school to get his MBA at Duke University. In 2000, he was introduced to the business world as a marketing executive, where he worked for global companies such as Cardiac Science, Pentair and Maurice, among others.

“I was in the business world for more than 20 years and I was ready to make a change” he said.

Griffith saw the opportunity of teaching students the knowledge he gained in the years he spent as a marketing executive around the world and decided to take it. With his familiarity of the business world and skills learned at his MBA, Griffith became a professor in the Briar Cliff Business Department, helping students succeed professionally and personally.

Professor Griffith’s teaching style is based on every student learning differently rather than a one size fits all method. As a professor at Briar Cliff, the biggest lesson Griffith has learned is that teaching is not just teaching, and there is not only one way to do it. His philosophy to succeeding in teaching is understanding that, and being flexible with students by meeting them where they are. 

Griffith enjoys seeing students succeed inside and outside of the classroom. In some of his classes, students partner with a big company as part of a larger project. One of Griffith’s favorite memories was receiving a call from the leaders of this company mentioning how amazing his students were and how their performance in the project was beyond their expectations.

“So many great memories like this one," Griffith said. "When our students do that well that they impress people outside the University."

Throughout his tenure at Briar Cliff, Griffith has developed his teaching style, supported students, and created endless memories. “I love teaching here, and I love being here,” he said. “I have really good memories, beginning from the day I started.”